Marion County housing market continues to improve

Published: Thursday, March 21, 2013 at 1:53 p.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, March 21, 2013 at 7:29 p.m.

Marion County's housing market continued to improve during February as the median sales price reached its highest level in nearly three years, closings topped a three-month high, and pending sales were at the highest levels since the market crashed at the onset of the recession.

The median single-family home sales price in February rose to $99,900, the highest it's been since April 2010 and a 17.6 percent increase over February 2012, according to a report released by the Ocala/Marion County Association of Realtors on Thursday.

During February, Realtors also sold 355 single-family homes, up from 323 during January and a nearly 7 percent hike over February 2012.

Meanwhile, there were 604 pending sales during February, a 57.3 percent hike over the same month a year ago and the highest overall since before 2009. Pending sales is a good potential indicator of future closings, but changes in the market, such as the availability of financing, affect whether the pending sales eventually close.

The February sales information does not include properties sold by homeowners, only real estate agents.

As sales continue to increase and prices shoot upward, so has the share of buyers paying with cash. Cash sales are a good indicator of homes purchased by investors, because investors are more likely to have the needed money up front for the sale. Traditional home buyers require mortgages or other financing.

Duke Rountree, president of the Ocala/Marion County Association of Realtors and owner of Rountree Realty Corp. in Fort McCoy, said the February data was mostly a sign that the market would continue recovering.

Realtors "are running around like crazy" and "appointment (schedules) are full" and lenders are beginning to loosen lending requirements, which draws buyers into the market, he said.

But there is a potential looming problem for future housing sales: Home prices could be increasing too quickly, suggesting that the market could overheat unless new listings meet customer demand, he said.

During February, there were 818 new single-family home listings, about 6 percent greater than February 2012. Housing inventory, however, has remained stagnant at about 3,500 units, representing a 9.6 months supply.

"That's our struggle right now. (New listings) are a little lower than we would like," Rountree said. "If we don't continue to infuse more new listings," then prices could rise too fast.

When home prices (consistently) rise at double-digit percentages compared to levels from a year ago, it could mean that new inventory is not keeping up with demand and prices rise too quickly, reflecting a limited market.

"We don't want to see that long term," Rountree said. "That will put us in the same boat" that led to the housing market downturn.

But in time, and as home prices rise, more homeowners will earn enough equity in their properties to sell at a profit, and that will encourage more people to list their homes, he said.

That will work to dampen rising home prices enough to keep the market from overheating and still allow the market to grow at a healthy rate, Rountree said.

The market would best benefit from traditional three-bedroom, two-bath homes, he said, which is the typical kind of home buyers want.

Meanwhile, Rountree also prefers fewer cash sales, which in February made up 53 percent of home sales. That is the second highest level it's been since March 2012.

"I would feel more comfortable with it being at about one-third rather than half," he said.

The median length of time it took to sell a single-family home during February was 122 days, about the same as it's been for the past 10 months.

The average sales price, in relation to original list price, is also the highest it's been for the past four years, at 89.5 percent. As the gap between sales price and original asking price narrows, it is typically an indicator of a recovering market.

But Rountree said there still are many homeowners who have problems understanding that while home values have increased, their properties aren't worth what they were during the 2005-06 peak.

Of February's 355 closings, 252 were traditional sales, up 29.2 percent from February 2012; 71 were foreclosures, down 11.3 percent from a year ago; and 32 were short sales, down 43.9 percent from February 2012.

As for the near future, Rountree predicts more of the same: more closings, prices continuing to rise and more pending sales.

What the housing market could benefit from, he said, is a healthier local economy — namely, more jobs. Marion County's January unemployment level, the most recent data available, was 9.1 percent.

"We're still struggling. That's the one area that still worries me," Rountree said. "I'm not seeing enough job creation to sustain current home sales."

<p>Marion County's housing market continued to improve during February as the median sales price reached its highest level in nearly three years, closings topped a three-month high, and pending sales were at the highest levels since the market crashed at the onset of the recession.</p><p>The median single-family home sales price in February rose to $99,900, the highest it's been since April 2010 and a 17.6 percent increase over February 2012, according to a report released by the Ocala/Marion County Association of Realtors on Thursday.</p><p>During February, Realtors also sold 355 single-family homes, up from 323 during January and a nearly 7 percent hike over February 2012.</p><p>Meanwhile, there were 604 pending sales during February, a 57.3 percent hike over the same month a year ago and the highest overall since before 2009. Pending sales is a good potential indicator of future closings, but changes in the market, such as the availability of financing, affect whether the pending sales eventually close.</p><p>The February sales information does not include properties sold by homeowners, only real estate agents.</p><p>As sales continue to increase and prices shoot upward, so has the share of buyers paying with cash. Cash sales are a good indicator of homes purchased by investors, because investors are more likely to have the needed money up front for the sale. Traditional home buyers require mortgages or other financing.</p><p>Duke Rountree, president of the Ocala/Marion County Association of Realtors and owner of Rountree Realty Corp. in Fort McCoy, said the February data was mostly a sign that the market would continue recovering.</p><p>Realtors "are running around like crazy" and "appointment (schedules) are full" and lenders are beginning to loosen lending requirements, which draws buyers into the market, he said.</p><p>But there is a potential looming problem for future housing sales: Home prices could be increasing too quickly, suggesting that the market could overheat unless new listings meet customer demand, he said.</p><p>During February, there were 818 new single-family home listings, about 6 percent greater than February 2012. Housing inventory, however, has remained stagnant at about 3,500 units, representing a 9.6 months supply.</p><p>"That's our struggle right now. (New listings) are a little lower than we would like," Rountree said. "If we don't continue to infuse more new listings," then prices could rise too fast.</p><p>When home prices (consistently) rise at double-digit percentages compared to levels from a year ago, it could mean that new inventory is not keeping up with demand and prices rise too quickly, reflecting a limited market.</p><p>"We don't want to see that long term," Rountree said. "That will put us in the same boat" that led to the housing market downturn.</p><p>But in time, and as home prices rise, more homeowners will earn enough equity in their properties to sell at a profit, and that will encourage more people to list their homes, he said.</p><p>That will work to dampen rising home prices enough to keep the market from overheating and still allow the market to grow at a healthy rate, Rountree said.</p><p>The market would best benefit from traditional three-bedroom, two-bath homes, he said, which is the typical kind of home buyers want.</p><p>Meanwhile, Rountree also prefers fewer cash sales, which in February made up 53 percent of home sales. That is the second highest level it's been since March 2012.</p><p>"I would feel more comfortable with it being at about one-third rather than half," he said.</p><p>The median length of time it took to sell a single-family home during February was 122 days, about the same as it's been for the past 10 months.</p><p>The average sales price, in relation to original list price, is also the highest it's been for the past four years, at 89.5 percent. As the gap between sales price and original asking price narrows, it is typically an indicator of a recovering market.</p><p>But Rountree said there still are many homeowners who have problems understanding that while home values have increased, their properties aren't worth what they were during the 2005-06 peak.</p><p>Of February's 355 closings, 252 were traditional sales, up 29.2 percent from February 2012; 71 were foreclosures, down 11.3 percent from a year ago; and 32 were short sales, down 43.9 percent from February 2012.</p><p>As for the near future, Rountree predicts more of the same: more closings, prices continuing to rise and more pending sales.</p><p>What the housing market could benefit from, he said, is a healthier local economy — namely, more jobs. Marion County's January unemployment level, the most recent data available, was 9.1 percent.</p><p>"We're still struggling. That's the one area that still worries me," Rountree said. "I'm not seeing enough job creation to sustain current home sales."</p><p><i>Contact Fred Hiers at 867-4157 or fred.hiers@starbanner.com.</i></p>